Wow! This has been some month, huh?! Did we EVER think that #FreedomTweet 2010 would come to mean so much, to so many, OUTSIDE of our genea-family?

Did the Ancestors EVER think that we — their children — would be living as FREE as we do today? I often wonder if my Ancestors dreamed or imagined a better day. God, in my heart, I hope so.

Today marks the 145th Anniversary of Juneteenth — the nationally observed day commemorating the end of Slavery in the United States. On this day, starting in 1865 Galveston, Texas, Emancipated Slaves celebrated their new-found, but still greatly challenged — freedom.

So today, we speak and stand-up for FREEDOM. What it meant for our Ancestors of yesterday, and what it means to us today, their living legacies…

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Luckie Daniels, Our Georgia Roots | CoAAG 4th Edition: FreedomTweet 2010 ~ What Does FREEDOM Mean To Me? ~ Freedom means far more to me today, than it did a month ago when I first thought of #FreedomTweet.

Jacky Gamble, Vermont Genealogy | Juneteenth Events ~ Thank you Jacky for sharing with us the Juneteenth event of Portsmouth, NH & supporting FreedomTweet 2010!

Vicky Daviss-Mitchell, Mariah’s Zepher | Texas Tradition Arizona Style: Honoring Juneteenth ~ Thank you Ms. V for showing us how to celebrate Juneteenth, Arizona style!:-)

Angela Walton-Raji, My Ancestor’s Name | In the Spirit of Juneteenth: They Fought for Freedom ~ Thank you Angela for educating us on the important role the Colored Troops played in the Civil War, fighting for our freedom.

Sandra Taliaferro, I Never Knew My Father | Carnival of African American Genealogy ~ Freedom Tweet 2010 ~ What does FREEDOM Mean To Me? ~ Thank you Sandra for summing freedom up quite nicely — Freedom for me is a life without barriers.

Joann, J-Macs Journey | A Legacy of Freedom – Life Lesson’s for Grand’s Girls ~ Thank you Joann for sharing the freedom legacy you’ve both inherited and pass on through your descendants.

Toni Carrier, LowCountry Africana | We’re Celebrating 7 Days of Juneteenth! ~ Thank you Toni & LCA for this PHENOMENAL contribution to the 4th Edition of CoAAG — 7 days of new FREEDOM historical records! Preservation of history offers freedom to many!

Toney Holley, For All My Relations | What Freedom Means to Me ~ Thank you Toney for sharing your reflections on freedom & how its meaning changed when you journeyed to Washington, DC.

Kristin Williams, Finding Eliza | To Be Where You Can Breathe… ~ Thank you Kristin for sharing the  beautiful 1917 letter to your Grandfather Mershell Graham. It’s a bittersweet reminder that though “free” our Ancestors did not truly experience “freedom”.

Susan, Nolichucky Roots | What Does Freedom Mean To Me? ~ Thank you Susan for reflecting on your Ancestors freedom journey from Europe and committing to heal slavery’s legacy so that we all can live free. So glad we could encourage you to *tweet*!:-)

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Thanks to all the Genea-Contributors and supporters of FreedomTweet 2010! You have indeed made this 145th Juneteenth a day of true celebration and thanksgiving!:-)

Hugs to you,

Luckie.

Original Tuskegee Airman, Mr. LeRoy E. Eley Sr., is nothing short of amazing!

Born May 30, 1927 and the baby of the bunch at almost 83 years young, Mr. Eley is EVERYTHING you would expect a Tuskegee Airman to be — distinguished, proud and fast on his feet!:-) He is disarmingly charming and witty, and easily captivated the attention of some 60+ 4th grade students, teachers, parents and genea-guests.

For every 1 question answered — 10 more hands flew up! I was floored by Mr. Eley’s ability to recount even the most minute historical detail and surprised that right along with the students, I too received an [unexpected] history lesson! I’d never heard of the Red Tail Pilots!

Those blessed to be in the room were provided an insiders view of history, complete with stories and memories that only he and his elite Fraternity of Tuskegee Airmen Brothers can truly recount.

To Justis’ question of which was more challenging — fighting in the war or enduring racism in the military, he responded honestly — BOTH. Mr. Eley shared how when the servicemen traveled abroad to fight, they remained segregated — unable to fight together even in the face of a common enemy!

When asked by a young lady to describe the feeling of flying a plane, Mr. Eley just smiled, responding there was nothing in the world like it!

Indeed, aviation is Mr. Eley’s passion. Since volunteering for the USAAF at the age of 17 (assigned to Class 46-D at Tuskegee AAF) until his retirement in 1990 from the Federal Aviation Administration, Mr. Eley vested his entire professional career doing what he loved most — flying airplanes. He even shared with me that at age 79 years, he earned his Seaplane Rating from the FAA!

When asked to explain how the Tuskegee Airmen were trained, Mr. Eley provided detail after detail — proving that earning the right to be Tuskegee Airmen was no easy task! They were the BEST of the BEST!

I loved looking at the image of the Tuskegee Flight Instructors (a picture I’ve admired many times) and hearing Mr. Eley say pointing, “Archie Smith taught me everything I know about flying” and “Charlie Smallwood taught me how to fly in weather”.

The kids got a kick knowing that Mr. Eley had been friends with Charles “Chief” Anderson, the Airman who flew First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt when she visited the Tuskegee Army Air Field in 1941. They did not want to let go of the Congressional Medal of Honor the Tuskegee Airmen were awarded in 2007 by President Bush and Congress!

Mr. Eley’s instruction to the young people landed like words of wisdom from a caring Grandfather. He continued to encourage the students to see life for what it is — an open field of opportunity. He challenged them to become tomorrow’s community leaders, charged with protecting the civil liberties so many of our Ancestors have fought and died for.

In a word, the young people felt EMPOWERED and I nothing but pride. My shoulders were a bit higher, knowing that I share ancestry with African-American men of this caliber. I was puffed-up, learning firsthand about the men who represented us both then and now. I was grateful Justis had the opportunity to be in his presence to benefit from this personal sharing of World War II history.

The plan is to rise early Saturday morning — Justis has been invited by the Atlanta Chapter President, Master Sgt. Floyd Stanfield, to attend the monthly gathering of Tuskegee Airmen! He tells us, “they all will be there!”. Who could pass up such an invitation?

As a single Mother of a black male child, I need him to see these great men. I need him dreaming of one day becoming a part of such a distinguished Fraternity of Life Brothers. He must always understand his accountability to community, family and the Ancestors who came before him.

The Tuskegee Airmen served — and continue to serve — with honor.  Their presence and legacy remind us of the stock we descend from and inspire us to continue to reach higher.

Mr. Eley did this Mother’s heart a TON of good! He joked with me that I was “lucky” to get the Airmen rallied in less than 2 weeks time, given their demanding public schedules.

Nope Mr. Eley, today was no luck ~ it was all just pure blessing.

Luckie.

It was only after the 1981 passing of my Great Grandmother,  Annie CARTER JACKSON (1898-1981), that I came to understand the depth of her presence in our family — she was truly the glue that held everyone and everything in place.

Grandma Jackson was everything a Grandmother should be ~ patient, wise, sweet and nurturing. Part of the reason I’ve been challenged in the quest to overcome my java-habit, is because as a child, Grandma Jackson would prepare me a very weak cup of hot tea with milk to make me think I was sharing a cup of coffee with her!

To this day, when I need comfort, I retreat to a cup of coffee and it pulls me back to a time when life was much simpler and I was surrounded by a clan of loving women.

Grandma Jackson was also known for her infamous Washington-Wilkes sayings, that though funny on the surface, carried very true meanings.  Ironic how I still find myself quoting these in my daily life! My favorite Annie Saying is  “A cow will need his tail to fan flies for more than one summer.”, which meant –  don’t worry if someone does you wrong, they will soon need you again!

I can still remember Grandma’s long silver hair that she allowed me to style endlessly, hanging clothes on the line in her backyard in one of her favorite house-coats, wrapping her hand around my neck, with her tongue between her teeth, to braid my hair and bathing a tiny me in her kitchen sink.

The hymns she hummed constantly — at the most unexpected times — flow from my mouth to remind me that she is not far away. That I am still her special girl. I’ll Fly Away was her favorite:

One bright morning when this life is over,
I’ll fly away, Oh Glory
I’ll fly away; (in the morning)
Oh when I die, Hallelujah, by and by,
I’ll fly away (I’ll fly away)

Grandma Jackson crossed over on 10 July 1981, just three days after my 15th birthday.

I am blessed to have had Annie Carter Jackson with me, and grateful for her influence, as it is a key motivator for how as a woman, I live my life.

I miss you dearly and hope that I have made you proud Grandma.

Love,

Luckie (aka little Dona)

[Note: The featured image of Grandma was a candid shot snapped by her Son, the late Rev. Ronald Jackson, on one of our frequent Family fishing trips!:-]

Timestamp this moment Friends because with the arrival of the 1st Edition ~ Carnival of African-American Genealogy: Restore My Name – Slave Records & Genealogy Research, we have made history!

Never before has an open dialogue and mass sharing of historic slave data between the descendants of slaves and slave owners occurred online, and quite honestly, I’d be surprised if exchanges such as this have transpired much offline either!:-)

On February 8, the genea-community began answering my charge to become a Friend of Friends to their fellow African-American researchers, by sharing oft times private slave data encountered through their own personal genealogy research.

Since then, I’ve been alerted daily via emails, blog posts and tweets to online resources that provide invaluable information pertaining to our enslaved Ancestors. Information that otherwise, may never have been discovered.

In addition to the Restore My Name submissions presented below, there have been at least 20-25 individual blog posts citing previously unpublished slave information! Simply AMAZING!:-)

So as the one who first sounded the alarm, let me also be the first to thank the genea-community for proving that we are in fact a true community of supporters to all who choose to join and a shining example that collectively we can rise above history’s most devastating blemish.

We have chosen to heal history, rather than hide from it.

I am proud of you. I am proud of US.

——♦——

Restore My Name – Slave Records & Genealogy Research

Alane Roundtree presents CoAAG 1st Edition: Restore My Name ~ Hammond-Davies Slave Bible Records 1830-1865 posted at A Friend of Friends.

…the Ancestors cannot seem to escape the auction block even in death.”

These words, written by Alane Roundtree on March 1, regarding slave records contained in a bible belonging to the Hammond-Davies families of Georgia and South Carolina, cut me to my core.

As I read Alane’s email, I came to understand that since 2004, she has been a true Friend of Friends to eight pages of the original bible manuscript containing the birth, death and marriage dates of the men, women and children once enslaved by the Hammond-Davies family.

I also learned that on February 25, at Swann Galleries in New York City, the Hammond-Davies Bible was sold a second time, for the total sum of $5,760.00.

To my knowledge, until Alane and I began our exchange, she was totally unaware of the CoAAG’s existence and its First Edition theme –  Restore My Name ~ Slave Records and Genealogy Research.

As Miriam Kidmiff of Ancestories says, it was a pure psychic roots experience — the Hammond-Davies Ancestors chose for their names to be restored at this very moment.

Peace to the Ancestors who have entrusted us with this part of their journey to freedom and thanks to the Friend of Friends like Alane and the 34 contributors to this First Edition of CoAAG.

The Ancestors aren’t just whispering anymore ~ they are finally exhaling.

——♦——

♦ Herstoryan presents Restore My Name: Slave Records and Genealogy Research, CoAAG, 1st Edition posted at Herstoryan. Herstoryan performs “her first act of genealogical kindness regarding slave documents” by sharing the Last Will and Testament of Cager Creel of Adair County, KY.

♦ Bill Grimke-Drayton presents Descendant of the Slaveholding Drayton Family in America and Barbados posted at LowCountry Africana. A guest blogger at LowCountry Africana, Bill shares his candid response to the questions posed by the Carnival of African American Genealogy.

♦ Vickie Everhart presents CoAAG – Restore My Name posted at Be Not Forgot. Vickie of Be Not Forgot spotlights slave births from a Davis bible record.

♦ Joann presents So Close But Yet So Far posted at J-Macs Journey. Joann of J-Macs Journey writes about forging ahead when a researcher fails to respond.

♦ Gini Webb presents Restore My Name ~ CoAAG ~ posted at Ginisology. Gini of Ginisology shares the names of slaves owned by her 4th great grandfather Beal Ijames of Mockville, NC.

♦ Sandra Taliaferro presents We’re Having A Carnival…I Wonder If The Ancestors Will Celebrate? posted at I Never Knew My Father. A unique twist on sharing and community responsibility is presented by Sandra of I Never Knew My Father.

♦ Carol presents Carnival of African-American Genealogy, Restore My Name posted at Reflections From the Fence. Carol of Reflections From the Fence intrigues us with a hint for researchers hunting for slave names and information via the Chancery Cases of Virginia.

♦ Luckie Daniels presents Wordy Wednesday: 1 Random Act of Kindness Changed My Life! ~ CoAAG 1st Edition posted at Our Georgia Roots. An old message board post and family bible lead me to the Daniels family I never knew.

♦ Vicky Daviss Mitchell presents Edwin Nelms Will and Inventory posted at Mariah’s Zepher.  Vicky of Mariah’s Zepher shares slave names from the will of Edwin Nelms of Grimes County Texas, and ponders the connection to her family.

♦ Toni Carrier presents Why Did I Not Know My Family Held Slaves? posted at LowCountry Africana. Toni of LowCountry Africana asks the thought-provoking question-Why Didn’t I Know My Family Held Slaves?

♦ Renate Sanders presents Restore My Name – CoAAG posted at Into the LIGHT. Renate of Into the Light meets a descendant of the slave-owning Yarboroughs of Franklin County, NC.

♦ Lorine McGinnis Schulze presents Carnival of African-American Genealogy: Slaves & Slave Owners posted at Olive Tree Genealogy Blog. Lorine of Olive Tree Genealogy Blog shares, “I am the descendant of slave owners. My husband is the descendant of slaves. We have each encountered unique experiences as we seek records of slave names”.

♦ Taneya Koonce presents Taneya’s Genealogy Blog: CoAAG Carnival: Research Connections posted at Taneya’s Genealogy Blog. Taneya of  Taneya’s Genealogy Blog meets a Koonce family descendant likely connected to the lineage of her ancestors slave owners.

♦ Greta Koehl presents Restore My Name – Slave Records and Genealogy Research posted at Greta’s Genealogy Bog. Greta of Greta’s Genealogy Blog is looking for the slaves of Hiram Brinlee of Collin, TX, and spotlights forums for sharing slave data.

♦ Dionne Ford presents All Relative posted at Finding Josephine. Connecting with a Howcutt researcher in England, Dionne of Finding Josephine strikes gold when she gets info on her ancestor Temple Burton.

♦ John Newmark presents Slave Records and Genealogy Research posted at Transylvanian Dutch. John of Transylvanian Dutch shares his thoughts and perspective on the five aspects for discussion in the first CoAAG.

♦ Robyn presents Restore My Name posted at Reclaiming Kin. Robyn of Reclaiming Kin gives her insightful responses to three of the questions offered for discussion.

♦ TCasteel presents The Wills of Two Nances posted at Tangled Trees. TCastell of Tangled Trees tells us “Ancestors, Reuben Nance and his father, William Nance, of Virginia, both left wills that listed slaves by name.”

♦ Amy Cain presents Carnival of African-American Genealogy (CoAAG) posted at Reconnected Roots. Amy of Reconnected Roots shares the 1844 will of Samuel Wright of York District, SC.

♦ Heather Wilkinson Rojo presents Black History Month – Part 1 posted at Nutfield Genealogy. Heather of Nutfield Genealogy shares slave names found in family records.

♦ Felicia Mathis presents Carnival of African-American Genalogy: Restore My Name at Echoes of My Nola Past. Felicia of Echoes of My Nola Past writes about the importance of descendants of slave owners sharing slave-related information.

♦ Kathleen Brandt presents Researchers to Share Family Slave Records – Responsibilities and Reasons posted at a3Genealogy. Kathleen of a3Genealogy shares emancipation records for Amyntus Earl of Hopkins County, KY.

♦ Mavis Jones presents Carnival of African – American Genealogy posted at Georgia Black Crackers. Mavis of  Georgia Black Crackers writes about the family bible of  Henry Hosch which contains the names of her enslaved ancestors.

♦ Anita Wills presents Carnival of African-American Genealogy posted at Slave & Genealogy Records. Anita of Restore My Name talks about finding and restoring the names of her slave ancestors.

♦ George Geder presents Restore My Name – Slave Records and Genealogy Research posted at Geder.Genealogy. George of Geder Genealogy speaks to the timeliness of the CoAAG and spotlights his ancestor Annie Ghant-Geder-Stewart.

♦ Debra Osborne Spindle aka “Tex” presents Restore My Name? Slave Records in the Family posted at All My Ancestors. Debra of All My Ancestors shares a division of slaves from the estate of Mordecai L. Spindle who died in 1857 in Virginia.

♦ Leslie Ann presents Carnival of African-American Genealogy — First Edition posted at Ancestors Live Here. Leslie Ann of Ancestors Live Here writes about her ancestor Captain George Cannon and his involvement in the slave trade.

♦ Martin Hollick presents Caesar Wallace ca. 1738-1821 of New Hampshire posted at The Slovak Yankee. Martin of The Slovak Yankee presents a fascinating story of Caesar Wallace of New Hampshire “a man of colour” who served during the American Revolution.

♦ Martin Hollick presents The Slovak Yankee: Fortune Yeaton ca. 1770 (?) – After 1800 of N.H. and Maine posted at The Slovak Yankee. Martin of The Slovak Yankee shares the story of Fortune Yeaton, a slave and free man of color, of New Hampshire and Maine.

♦ Ruth Himan presents Slave Records and Genealogy Research posted at Hayley. Ruth of Hayley offers her opinions on the questions offered for discussion for this first CoAAG, and in her own words is “looking forward to the actual connecting of the dots.”

♦ Dorsey presents Restore My Name posted at In Honor of My Ancestors. Dorsey of In Honor of My Ancestors wonders whether to mention the “s” word when attempting to connect with descendants of slave owners.

♦ Leah presents Slaves of the Wellons Plantation in Pulaski Co., KY posted at Internet Genealogist.  Leah writes about her search for the slaves of the Wellons Plantation in Pulaski, County, KY.

♦ Michael Hait presents Restore My Name: the first Carnival of African-American Genealogy posted at African-American Genealogy Examiner. Michael of the African-American Genealogy Examiner urges that the records involving slaves and former slaves must be brought to light.

♦ Craig Manson presents “Restore My Name:” The First Edition of the Carnival of African-American Genealogy posted at GeneaBlogie. Craig of GeneaBlogie thinks the budding dialogue between descendants of slaves and descendants of slave owners is a mightily important step for American genealogy and history, and is inspired to reach out to descendants of his ancestors slave owners.

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CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

CoAAG 2nd Edition  ~ Grandma’s Hand: Grandmothers and Their Influence On The Family

Host: Sandra Taliaferro of I Never Knew My Father

Grandmothers are often the matriarchs of the family. In fact, truth be told, many of us were raised by our grandmother; if not, she was definitely a constant in our lives.

For the 2nd Edition of CoAAG: Grandma’s Hand, write a post about your memories of your grandmother and be sure to include a picture of Grandma if you have one!

Well, I don’t know if you can feel it, but I’ve gone stark CoAAG cRaZy over here!

From jumping on the AfriGeneas Lunch Bunch Chat to dish on Carnival participation and blogging, to answering emails regarding  CoAAG submissions, to inking the commitments of future CoAAG Hosts {I’m floored by your support — we have CoAAG hosts through September!:-} — it’s been Carnival Madness 100% over here! So here’s the CoAAG skinny for today Thursday, March 11:

• 3/12 CoAAG 1st Edition Submission Deadline Approaches. C’mon… like [most] everything else (smile), you never forget your first Carnival! You have until Friday, 12 March at 11:59 PM ET to get those CoAAG submissions in! What’s that — you’re ready? Great! Click here!

• Questions Asked & Answered! Not quite sure how to post or how the submission form actually works? No worries — checkout the cheat-sheet below:

1. Once I’ve prepared my carnival post on my blog, what should I do? Bloggers should publish their post BEFORE they send the link on to the carnival.  This ensures that nothing goes wrong (the post isn’t published or the link changes) between the time the carnival submission is made and the actually carnival “roll up” is published.
2. What does the blog submission form really do? It’s a convenient way for the host to gather all the submissions in one  place – it also ensures that your submission won’t get lost in email spam or junk folder.
3. Once I publish the submission, will the post appear on both my and OGR’s blog? Yes.  OGR is the host and will do a “round up” on March 19. OGR will create a short mention of the blogger, their blog, the blog post and how it relates to the carnival theme.  This gives readers a way to jump over to your blog and read your entire post.
4. Am I required to pick one of the topics AND submit a record? Your post has to be aligned with the theme.  If there is supporting documentation (i.e. a record, image, etc) great, however this is not a requirement for CoAAG participation.

• Mad Props & Shouts to CoAAG’s supporters! You are MUCH appreciated Genea-Fam!:-)

• Jessica’s GeneJournal
• Christine’s Genealogy
• GeneaBloggers
• AnceStories
• Heritage Happens
• Greta’s Genealogy Bog

So that’s what’s shaking today. The CoAAG Train should be pulling into the station real soon friends!

Choooo-choooo!:-)

Luckie.

Fannie Louella Barwick {1920-1992} ~ Charcoal Portrait 1963

My Maternal Grandmother, I miss you dearly. May your place in our hearts and lives never be forgotten.

Luckie.

[Portrait by Henry Brown 1963 ~ Cincinnati, OH]

I must admit, I’m stoked to host the first edition of the Carnival of African-American Genealogy (CoAAG), going live on Friday, Mar. 19th!

The genealogy community took my Open Letter to heart, and immediately began setting the stage for what, to my knowledge, has never occurred online before — the open dialogue between descendants on BOTH sides of slavery’s legacy and the collaborative exchange of personal/family slave data.

The most times easy [smile] exchange that’s occurred over the past few weeks is a small act that speaks VOLUMES to our ability as a community to heal historical wounds.

When Restore My Name – Slave Records and Genealogy Research goes live on the 19th, it will send the message loud and clear that this community’s strength lies in its deep respect for ALL history and its honoring of one of our fundamental principles — random acts of genealogical kindness.

Now, we have lots of work ahead to get everyone ready for CoAAG’s grand debut!

For all newbies to the carnival scene, don’t worry, we have you covered with a week long carnival immersion at OGR! There’s NO WAY we’d allow you to be left out of this precedent setting event!:-)

By week’s end, we’ll be a community of carnival experts and chopping at the bits for CoAAG’s  next edition — Grandma’s Hand: Grandmothers and Their Influence on the Family hosted by our genea-pal, Sandra Taliaferro at I Never Knew My Father! Stay tuned for details!:-)

So I’m off to button-up Madness Monday (Part 2) post — Carvinal 101: Questions Asked & Answered!

If you need detailed “how-tos”, refresh your memory by re-reading Spread The Word! We’re Having A Carnival! If you have the details down and are ready to submit your CoAAG entry (go on with yo’ bad self!:-) click here and make it happen!

And lastly, don’t forget to pick-up your Carnival of African-American Genealogy badge! Special thanks to the divine footnoteMaven for the kind gift! We’ll wear it proudly!:-)

Shouts also to Thomas at GeneaBloggers for never failing to answer all my stupid questions!

Choooo-choooo! The CoAAG Carnival Train is pulling-out!:-)

Luckie.